Skip to content

The importance of inclusive storytelling with Sharika Chauhan

  • Published: 08/11/2024

At Bookmark, we have the privilege of working with many wonderful children’s authors who work hard to spark the joy of reading in children and promote inclusive storytelling. One such author is Sharika Chauhan, who shared a snippet of one of her debut children’s books: Maya’s Worldly Wonder series, in our upcoming Author Corner video series.

Sharika is dedicated to writing books that inspire and empower young readers, creating stories that celebrate diversity and encourage curiosity about the world.

We had the chance to speak to Sharika about her journey to becoming an author, the inspiration behind her fantastic books and her experience as a Bookmark Volunteer.

Sharika Chauhan in a black and white photo, smiling at the camera. She's wearing a white t-shirt and black-rimmed glasses

Sharika’s path to becoming a children’s author

Sharika Chauhan’s inspiration and journey as an author is deeply rooted in her love for storytelling, her passion for travel and adventure, and her commitment to empowering young minds through literacy and education. 

Her collaboration with Bookmark has only strengthened her dedication, as volunteering with the charity offered first-hand insight into the challenges faced by struggling readers. This experience reinforced her to champion social impact initiatives that support young readers and drive educational equity.

Sharika was inspired to become a children’s author after volunteering with Bookmark. She said her time as a reading volunteer exposed her to how challenging it must be for a struggling reader.

Because of this, she decided to delve into her creative side and pursue her lifelong dream of becoming an author. Sharika set out to write stories that could help inspire the next generation and future generations, especially South Asian girls”.

She said, life’s too short, I found my passion and I really want to write these books to inspire kids”.

The role of literacy in Sharika’s life

Growing up loving Enid Blyton adventure books, Sharika was a self-proclaimed bookworm who adored books about time travel and magical lands. She used books to learn English, having only spoken her mother tongue, Gujarati, in her early years.

Sharika used books to pick up the language faster”, which helped her be successful in school and attain a flourishing career in finance.

Four Maya's Worldly Wonders books held by the author. The covers are bright colours and show the protagonist, Maya, in different countries - Japan, Malaysia, Nepal and Brazil.

The importance of reading and writing was instilled in her from a young age. She recalled her parents encouraging her to write a diary about their six-week trip to India that she went on with her family when she was around ten years old.

Sharika spent 16 years in the financial sector, from running operations and COO roles at Investment firms to co-founding a fintech start-up. During these roles, she loved “[getting] creative with solutions and problem solving”, utilising the creative side that she developed in childhood.

Creating Maya’s Worldly Wonders

Sharika’s debut series, Maya’s Worldly Wonders, was inspired by her solo travels to over 40+ countries and desire to empower children to explore the world around them.

The concept for Sharika’s book series began, while she was travelling in Malaysia. She said: I get some of the best ideas when I travel… [that’s why travelling] is the theme of Maya’s Worldly Wonders as a children’s travel adventure series”.

Through her books, Sharika aims to inspire children to be brave, bold and make your own adventures” and highlights that there is a lot about overcoming fears and lots of strong messaging in the books”. Each story is infused with messages of empowerment, resilience and curiosity about the world – something she said has been intriguing for children and adults.

Four Maya's Worldly Wonders books placed on the table in a fan shape. The covers are bright colours and show the protagonist, Maya, in different countries - Japan, Malaysia, Nepal and Brazil

The significance of a South Asian protagonist

Sharika’s decision to feature a South Asian protagonist stems from her personal experiences growing up. She said she struggled to relate to the characters in the books she loved, as there were very few Indian characters. She lacked a role model in children’s literature.

By creating Maya, a strong South Asian heroine, Sharika aims to provide children with diverse, relatable characters that resonate with their own cultural experiences – an important element of inclusive storytelling.

Studies show that diversity in books is important because it helps readers understand the world in a more complex way. This helps children to develop empathy, build healthy relationships and be more accepting of people from different backgrounds – they can become more adaptable and open minded.

Sharika acknowledges the broader importance of diversity, highlighting that brown authors are often underrepresented in the book and author industry – something she’s keen to change.

She said there’s still a long way to go” but has noticed the sector becoming more inclusive. As an author with Indian heritage, she hopes her work will pave the way for more diverse voices to be represented in children’s literature.

  • In an illustrated sunset scene, Maya sat at a wooden table with a plate of food. She's smiling and looking at the camera.
  • In a jungle scene, Maya is wearing a brown backpack and holding a map, she is looking at a small plane.
  • Maya is standing on the Himalayan mountain, she looks excited, has her hands in the air and a camera around her neck. She is standing with another climber who is looking at the camera with his arms crossed.

Sharika’s experience as a Bookmark Volunteer

As a passionate reader, Sharika found her voluntary role at Bookmark particularly meaningful. She described her experience as rewarding and fulfilling, highlighting the importance of volunteering with young children because of the large impact it has on their lives.

As a kid you don’t know what will affect you, so [as a volunteer] to be part of such an early, crucial age, is important. [Volunteering] is also a liberating experience and it makes you feel good. Take a step out of your day, do something a little bit different… you don’t know what it’s going to be like for your own personal growth”.

Become a Bookmark volunteer

Help a child by becoming a reading volunteer with Bookmark. Deliver two 30-minute reading sessions a week, face-to-face or online, and change a child’s life story.

Read more

The importance of reading in today’s society

For Sharika, being able to read is essential to be an effective communicator and helps you to develop essential skills that are transferable to all areas of life.

She also highlighted that reading from a young age can help to spark so many little ideas subconsciously and consciously and that’s super important from a creative perspective”.

Through her volunteering at Bookmark and now her work as a children’s author, Sharika hope to continue to promote the importance of literacy and inspire young readers to discover the magic of books and foster a lifelong love for reading

Follow Sharika’s writing journey and Maya’s adventures on her socials:

Instagram: @mayas.worldly.wonders

TikTok: @mayas.worldly.wonders

Facebook: @Maya’s Worldly Wonders

Become a volunteer

Are you interested in learning more about volunteering with Bookmark?

Find out more

Subscribe to our newsletter

Sign up to our newsletter to find out the latest about volunteering at Bookmark and the work we’re doing to change children’s stories. 

By signing up, you opt in to hear from Bookmark Reading Charity and agree to our Privacy Policy.